Will somebody please think of the children!
They claim it’s equivalent to a drug, alcohol or gambling addiction. It is threatening toddlers, kids and teens and could disintegrate our future generations. But just how real is the threat of screen addiction? 60 minutes recently explored the concept of screen dependence, symptomatic withdrawals and the research that is exposing its influence on children as young as three years old.
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Psychologists Shaw and Black define the disorder as characterised by excessive or poorly controlled preoccupations, urges or behaviours regarding computer use or internet access that lead to impairment or distress. As computer reliance and internet access grows, the condition has gained increasing attention amongst psychology researchers and popular media.
60 Minutes presented the condition as a very real threat, interviewing a recovered internet addict, a mother of out of control “screen obsessed” children and psychologist Dr Kimberley Young, a specialist in the field for 20 years. Dr Young identifies that the risk lays primarily in online gaming and chat rooms, as people search for an escape and enjoy being a part of an alternate reality. Young identified the internet as a behavioural addiction with a large number of sufferers presenting symptoms aligning with pathological gambling and other compulsive behaviours. As their addiction grows, they tend to neglect work, education, relationships and other more important responsibilities.
As I watched the exposé unfold, I couldn’t help but feel 60 minutes had over dramatised the whole phenomena. Did they use their prime time platform to shed light and raise awareness on a very real issue affecting our society? Or had they perhaps planted a seed for moral panic, looking to blame technology for children’s developmental issues and teen’s social withdrawal.
The segment raised the deeper issue of nature vs nurture and the responsibilities of parents to control their children’s intake of everything. It is easy to pass the blame onto technology as smart phones, tablets and computers increasingly become part of everyday work and school life. However, behavioural reactions of distress and contempt amongst children if you remove something they enjoy is not a new phenomena. Childhood obesity can often be seen as a result of persistent complaining and crying until the parent gives in and provides the child with more food. As seen an episode of Our America and Lisa Ling’s exploration into childhood obesity, Jalan is persistent with his mother in giving him more food and time and time again, she gives into his pleading.
Parenting is a tough job. There are a growing number of external factors to contend with and a growing amount of media scrutiny, continually forcing parents to second-guess their choices. If the media can assist in raising education and awareness of children’s behaviour and help parents identify potential problems then it can use its power for positive change. 60 minutes however devalued their message through the use of scare tactics and over dramatic scenes. Each child, teen and individual has their own cognitive responses and it is difficult to just blanket the blame on technology.
60 Minutes is prime time journalism, with its 8:30 Sunday night time slot, it continues to battle out with the best to gain top ratings. As a long time viewer of 60 Minutes, I was disappointed to see the way they approached this story as it felt manipulating to watch.
With the feature of three different parties throughout the story, from anxiety attacks to psychological diagnosis, the inference that screen addiction was debilitating children as young as three years old had to be the most interesting. Vision of children screaming, throwing tantrums and behaving in a way you wouldn’t wish on your worst enemy, 60 Minutes echoed the sentiment of an old cartoon favourite Mrs Lovejoy:
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Interviewing a mother who claimed her children to be completely fixated and behaviourally impaired when in the midst of screens and technology, Charles Wooley followed the journey to rid the children of the screen obsession. When the mother intervened and controlled their technology intake, the children were converted as they played outside and acted like angels. It was a true Sunday night miracle.
Choosing to specifically instil the idea of perceived evil and attach it to screen orientated activities, 60 Minutes seems to have sided with the dramatic story, over good journalism. As Goode describes, moral panics make society feel that “something should be done” and in reference to this particular ‘journalistic’ piece from 60 Minutes, I feel that sentiment couldn’t be more true. This isn’t the first time 60 Minutes has copped criticism lately, with its recent story on Alex Mackinnon, claimed to have been clearly skewed to trashing fellow NRL player Cameron Smith.
With the changing environment of the journalistic landscape, do shows like 60 Minutes feel the need to compel people with the drama? There is no doubting the dynamics and genius behind the journalists who share so many great stories through the program. I do however feel, 60 Minutes should steer clear of thriving off societies fear and stick to the doctors giving children new hearts.
